Will Zike
Perplexed. That’s the only way one can look at the Eagles through the first three weeks of the NFL season. On one hand, the Eagles are 3-1 with a victory over a Super Bowl contender in the Baltimore Ravens. The defense has, for the most part, outperformed the expectations of most fans. A team that had five 4th quarter leads result in losses last year, appears to have developed what Skip Bayless refers to as, “the clutch gene”. At the same time, critical components of the team have had subpar performances. Andy Reid continues to repeat the same mistakes he has made for over a decade. Perhaps worst of all, the high-powered offense that had become a staple of the team the last two years has looked out of sync so far.
The defense has made major strides in coordinator Juan Castillo’s second season. Much of this can be attributed to the upgrade of a linebacker staff that, to put it lightly, performed poorly last year. The additions of DeMeco Ryans at the critical MLB spot and Mychal Kendricks on the strong side have allowed the Eagles to perform better against the run, the Achilles heel of last year’s team, and improved coverage against TEs, an issue that has plagued the team ever since the death of long time coordinator Jim Johnson. Along with the performance upgrade he has brought, Ryans has assumed a leadership role in a team sorely in need of it.
However, one disappointing aspect of the defense so far has been the performance of CB Nnamdi Asomugha. Asomugha has failed to fill the role of the shutdown CB that he was signed for two off-seasons ago. In Week 2 against Baltimore he was beaten for a pair of touchdowns and committed a penalty in the waning minutes that almost cost the Eagles the win. Arizona Cardinal’s wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald outplayed him in their Week 3 matchup. Despite Asomugha’s troubles the defense has shown a marked improvement over last season.
The bane of the Eagles existence last year was the 4th quarter lead. Out of the eight losses the Eagles took in their 2011 campaign, five of them came with the team entering the 4th quarter ahead. The defense demonstrated a lack of ability to stop the opposing offense from driving and the Eagles’ offense proved incapable of overcoming the lackluster defensive play.
These issues appear to be a thing of the past at this early point in the season. The Eagles made history this year as the first team to win their first two regular season games by one point. With a 17-16 win over the Browns in Week 1 and the 24-23 victory against the Ravens, the group has looked like a new team in the 4th quarter. The offense, in both games, was able to overcome inefficiency and turnover issues, resulting in game-winning drives in the final minutes of both games. DeMeco Ryans and the rest of the defense were able to get critical stops with sufficient time remaining for the opposing offense to lead a drive.
Despite these improvements there are some key parts of the team that are not looking as good. It all starts with Coach Andy Reid. LeSean McCoy is one of the top RBs in the league and yet Reid refuses to use him on a consistent basis. In the first week the team threw the ball 56 times, but ran the ball just 30 times. This almost 2:1 pass to run ratio came against a defense that is known for having considerably better pass coverage. In the first half of the Cardinals game, McCoy received four out of the five carries. This accompanied 25 throws on the part of the offense. A 5:1 pass to run ratio! This strategy has left QB Michael Vick out to dry and vulnerable to take the big hits that worry so many people.
Offensively, the squad has looked lost. The combination of Michael Vick’s pedestrian performance and the offensive line’s poor play has resulted in a bad display on offensive at this point in the season. Vick has been mediocre at best so far. He has thrown six interceptions to a mere three touchdowns. Vick has tried to make plays out of nothing, good to a point, but as a result he has taken far too many hits. Though his holding onto the ball has been a factor in the hits Vick has taken, the offensive line has done him no favors. Granted they have lost C Jason Kielce for the year and LT King Dunlap was out last game, but neither is an excuse for the poor job they have done. The line has left Vick in numerous bad situations.
At the end of the day the Eagles are 3-1. It hasn’t been the prettiest way there, but the team has shown character and determination that was not present last year. There are obvious problems in the team, but they can be improved upon.